Love and Hate: Story 2
by SagittariusWarrior
Summary: Rose and Dimitri have been in love over the hundreds and thousands of years. Follow their love story through this sequel to Angles and Gods.
1. Prologue Part 1

London 1795

I walked along the streets of London at a brisk pace. It was going to rain soon and I needed to get home before Dimitri did. I had to get the parlor cleaned and since I let my cleaning servant go last week, I had to do it all myself.

I walked out of the main city and into the outskirts of town. I walked down the long drive that led to my humble manor and ducked inside. Almost immediately, the smell of the Indian tea that was imported to the local store a week ago filled my nose. Daisy, my cook, must have seen me coming and had put tea on the stove. God bless her.

"Miss. Rose," I heard Daisy call, "I have your tea on the stove and a soup in a pot ready for you if you would like it."

"Thank you Dear, but I think I shall just take tea. Master Belikov is coming today as well so make sure to make a dinner well enough for the two of us. There will be leftovers so you may take those to your son tonight," I said smiling as I took my bonnet and travel coat off. I peeled off my gloves and placed them in the drawer in the parlor.

I made my way through my house, picking up things that needed to be put away. I enjoyed having a clean home and Dimitri did as well. It was something that I had grown to enjoying after I fell from Tartarus.

The clock in the hall chimed five and I immediately turned towards the door. As if on cue, Dimitri, in a fashionable suit for this day and age, waltzed through my door. His long, brown hair was pulled back with a white ribbon at the base of his neck, his tall, black boots were shined and polished, and his breeches, shirt, and jacket were all pressed to perfection. He smiled as he closed the door behind him.

I ran into his arms and he lifted me up causing my skirts to swirl around us. He chuckled as I laughed in surprise at the suddenness of flying in his arms.

"Rose, my darling!" he exclaimed. His English accent was slightly off. I laughed at the silliness of it.

"My love, your accent leaves something to be desired," I giggled as I let my fingers play with his ponytail.

"I'm sorry, please accept my apology. My time away from London leaves my accent in dreadful shape when I return," Dimitri stated sadly. The hand that wasn't around my waist went to his heart in false hurt.

I kissed his cheek and led him into the parlor. He took a seat in the only chair that I purchased specifically for him. It was a charming, white, velvet, winged arm chair that made him look heavenly when he sat in it. I sat across from him on the love seat.

"How have you been while I have been away?" Dimitri asked seriously. He hated when he left me alone.

"Delightful when I'm not at home. I have met this charming woman, a Ms. Jane Austen. She is a writer and is working on a novel called _Persuasion _when she's not courting a Mr. Thomas Lefroy. She lives in Steventon so when she comes to London do I ever see her." I had to smile at my companion's attitudes and mannerisms while I told Dimitri about her. He was smiling at me while I spoke. I knew that if I was happy, he was delighted. He loved to see me smile.

"Sounds like you have had quiet the time," he chuckled after I told him about a party that Jane and I went to that went horridly wrong to our delight.

I nodded and gave a weak smile. "It would have been better if you were there to see for yourself."

I looked down at my hands to recompose myself. I heard Dimtri's boots on the carpet and felt the seat cushion deepen with an added weight. A warm hand went under my chin and glided it up to face Dimitri's das eyes.

"I would give anything to be here with you, Rose, but Gabriel is making me work more than ever. Ivan and Adrian think that it is because he knows that I am in love with you."

I pulled my face out of his hands and sighed. "If he had made that law, can't you persuade him to abolish it? We cannot be the only Angel/Mortal couple out there." I knew I was fighting a losing battle, but I couldn't just sit here and let the Angels dictate my life.

"You know that I have tried to get Gabriel to see reason, and yes we are the only couple and were aren't even an Angel/Mortal couple. We are an Angel/…and something couple. You aren't a Mortal so we cannot call you that." Dimitri grasped my hand.

"I know." I sat there for a moment before I asked my next question. "When do you leave again?"

"Today. In about an hour if I am lucky. The Angels are calling me up more and more to work on things that they need me to do. I could be called up any moment."

I felt a tear roll down my face and I bit my lip to keep a sob in my throat. Dimitri saw this and hugged me to him. He ran his hands over my curled hair and let me cry into his jacket.

After about five minutes, he stopped and looked down at me. Sadness and love swam in his eyes.

"Will you be alright? I won't leave until I know that you will be okay."

I nodded and wiped my eyes with a handkerchief that Dimitri held out for me. "I'll be fine. I have been thus far." I crumbled up the cloth in my fist and looked at Dimitri. "I love you. I miss you every moment that you are gone."

Dimitri leaned down and kissed me. He pulled back long enough to speak. "I love you more than life itself and I miss you tremendously."

He kissed me again and vanished by using his Angel Magic.


	2. Prologue Part 2

Paris 1831

"Votre Café avec la crème, madame," my servant, Cecile, said kindly as she put the china cup down in front of me.

"Merci Cecile. Vous êtes libre de vous rentrer maman si vous voulez. Je peux gérer la maison me." I replied with a smile.

"Merci Manque. Rose! Je vous verrai dans la matinée!," she squealed.

"Très bien!" I called after her.

I watched the fourteen-year-old girl run out of my house and to her mother. Cecile worked for me five days out of the week and I paid her generously. She had to help support her younger siblings and so she and her mother worked.

I went back to my book that was a fabulous tale written by Victor Hugo. The novel was just published earlier this year and it was riveting. I read through the afternoon and into the evening. At five, the clock chimed and I looked at the door out of habit. The doorway was empty. It didn't surprise me. It had been that way since the last time he came when I lived in London.

I went back to me book and the moment I did, a shadow, the shape of a well-built man filled my doorway. It was pushed open and Dimitri strode in.

He walked right up to me and kissed me hard and passionately. His arms wrapped around me and held me to him. When he pulled back, he was breathless.

"After all this time, I had to kiss you, touch you, be near you. My soul has been calling out for you since I saw you last," he proclaimed immediately.

"After all this time, I deserve an explanation as to where you've been!" I said a little hurt.

Dimitri looked down at me with sorrow in his eyes. "Gabriel is furious that we have been together since your rebirth. He says it's unnatural and that we should end it. I am not to be with a woman who never ages, yet seems perfectly human. He has been keeping me away on purpose."

I gripped his hands in mine. "I don't care about what Gabriel thinks! He has kept us apart for thirty-six years! I haven't heard from you or anything! What he's doing is wrong!" I was furious and I felt no reason to not calm down.

"Rose you need to understand that this is all new to us. No one has ever changed a Goddess to a Mortal before. We don't even know if you are a Mortal. Gabriel is doing some work on it." Dimitri reasoned.

"I am human, but not a Mortal. I haven't aged a day since I was killed in Tartarus, you said so yourself. I haven't felt the urge to cause chaos to humans since then either. There is nothing wrong with me! Gabriel just doesn't like me! He's still holding a grudge against me for my past transgressions!" I exclaimed.

Dimitri shook his head, his eyes hardening a bit. "You don't know that! I work with him all day and he says that he is looking for an explanation to your state. He wants to help us, not fight us."

"My state?" I was flabbergasted.

"You know what I mean to say," Dimitri said heatedly.

"Actually, I don't think I do. You make it sound like I am from another world. You act as if I am a mental patient that needs help! I need the man I love to be with me, not working for a boss that hates me!" I felt the urge to sob at the unfairness of the situation.

"I am with you, you just need to understand what I have to work with," Dimitri said. His tone had changed from a stony, emotionless one to a soothing whisper. He placed his hands on my face and forced me to look at him. "I'll prove it too you if you wish."

"Come here in three days time. We can be together for a night and I will be happy." It was a simple request, but something told me that I wasn't going to see it granted.

Dimitri kissed my forehead. "Done. I will be here at five o clock sharp in three days time."

He kissed my lips and then left.

**Translations.**

**1) your coffee with cream ma'am**

**2)thank you cecile, you are free to go home to your mama if you want. I can manage the house myself.**

**3)Thank you miss. Rose! I will see you in the morning.**

**4)Very Well.**


	3. New Life in NYC

New York 2012

I walked down the street until I got to my office at the _New York Times_. I ran inside and to the elevator just as it was closing.

"Wait up!" I called.

An older man in a suit held the doors for me as my bags and I got on the elevator.

"Thank you," I said as I took a deep breath. I had run back from a much needed Starbucks break and I needed to get back to work. I had a deadline to make.

The elevator dinged as it hit my sixth floor office and the doors opened. I rushed out and down the hall, passing all of my co-workers until I got to my small, corner office and closed the door behind me. I threw my purse and computer bag with all of my advice column letters on the chair opposite of my desk and sat behind my laptop. I was working on my third column idea when my phone rang.

"Rose Hathaway," I answered never taking my eyes off my screen.

"Hey, Rose it's Lissa. What are you doing later tonight?"

I smiled at my friend's voice on the other end of the line. "I've got nothing planned. What were you thinking?"

"Maybe a drink and people watching?" Her voice sounded hopeful.

"A drink will always be welcomed by me, but people watching is code word for boy watching." I typed a good ending to my column and saved it to my hard drive.

"Please Rose? I know that café that is near Rockefeller Plaza. That gives us a perfect view of the street where guys walk everyday! We can find us a couple of hot guys and call it a day!" I had to smile at her optimism. She was always the one to look for guys wherever we go.

"Let me finish up here and I'll met you in the lobby of the apartment," I chuckled as she squealed into the phone.

"Oh Rose we are gonna have so much fun! I can't wait! I'll go shopping and I'll find you something sexy to wear. No way in hell am I letting you go out in your work clothes!" Lissa shrieked.

"Whoa girl! I don't need clothes, what I am wearing right now is fine," I tried to shoot her down before she blew a fortune on a dress that I didn't need.

"Tosh! You are getting a new outfit before we go out. I'll bring it to the apartment when I come to pick you up. Ta ta!" she sang into the phone before she hung up.

"God that girl is going to smother me to death!" I mumbled as I hung up and sent the column to the printer. While I waited for the page to print, I looked down at my outfit that I work to work this morning. A crisp, lime green button down and a pair of black slacks, and the look was completed with a pair of black heels that were sexy but comfy to wear to work.

Huffing over my outfit and how right Lissa was about it, I closed my laptop and pulled my other column ideas out of my computer bag. With them in hand, I went to the printer and picked up my third advice piece before I went down the hall to my bosses office to turn them in. Alberta was sitting behind her desk working on something with the ads. I threw the column papers on the mahogany wood that stood between the two of us.

"About time Hathaway. I was beginning to think that you weren't going to show up with your column," Alberta said in a tone that told me it was not a good time to get on her bad side. She looked up at me impatiently over the top of her glasses.

"Well, I had to think really long and hard about tomorrow's column. I wrote up three to give you some options on which to choose." I gestured towards the _Ask Rose_ answers on her desk.

"And I will, when I finally have the time. Yes _Ask Rose_ is a big deal breaker when it comes to buying us over the _Bay Mirror Paper_, but right now, I have an obligation with three businesses that have paid a lot of money to have an ad in the paper and I am no closer getting this figured out how to put this together than when Even gave it to me an hour ago. Now, if you don't have anything else to bug me about, I have work to do."

With the impression that I was about to get my head bit off if I didn't leave pronto, I turned on my head and walked out of the office. I grabbed my bags, turned out the light in my office and left. I slipped a note under the door of Alberta's office saying that I was leaving for the night and I could be contacted on my cell.

"Hey Rosie!"

I turned to see my old friend Mason flagging me down.

"Hey Mase, what's up?"

"I was actually coming over here to see Alberta. Is it worth it?" He straightened his crocked tie as best as possible, only to mess it up even more.

I laughed a little and set my bags down. I tightened his tie and made him look slightly more presentable. I only wished there was something that I could do for the messy red hair.

"Alberta is in a mood thanks to Even so if you want to keep your head and both balls, I would stay away from that office as long as possible, my friend." I patted his shoulders before I shifted my bags back onto my own.

"Damn. I really need her opinion about how to write the classifieds." Mason put his hands on his hips and sighed.

"Well I wouldn't try to walk within a ten-foot radius of that door Hun."

"Okay, will I'll just go back to my little desk and hide from the Big Bad Berta." Mason shrugged and trudged off towards his pitiful excuse for an office while I went to the elevators.

Out on the streets of NYC, I walked out of the office and took a left to my apartment on East 3rd Street. I ran across the street to the apartment complex that I lived in and ran up to my third floor home.

Once inside, I dumped all of my stuff off at the kitchen counter. I looked over to the phone to see if there were any messages that I had missed at work and found one message on the machine. I pressed the button and waited for the message to start, and when it did, I really wished that I hadn't listened.

_I heard that you were living in New York under the name of Rose. You changed it from Eris after that Angel killed off the Goddess in you. So you're what, an immortal girl that poses as a twenty-year-old writer for a newspaper? Very odd for you don't you think? I thought you would be writing obituaries but I see that you are an advice columnist. I also heard that you hate being immortal. I know a cure for that. You know how to contact me if you are interested._

The line went dead and my blood ran cold.


	4. Major Problem

I gripped the edge of the coffee table to keep myself upright. I did not just hear the voice that I thought I did. I couldn't have. I wasn't a Goddess any more. I hadn't been one in thousands of years. There was no way that he could have found me.

Visions of the last time that I saw the God flashed through my memory: his form foreboding as he stood in my realm of chaos. The constant smell that only he could make that made everything in the entire cosmos know who was coming. The voice that made everyone shook with fear because of his power.

I took in a deep breath as I allowed my mind to except the fact that _Hades_ had found me and that he knew that I hated being immortal when all of my friends, the once from the past and Lissa, would die while I lived on.

My cell ringing snapped me out of my terror filled thoughts. Lissa was calling to tell me that she was here.

"Hello?" I said as calmly as possible. No one on the planet could miss the shake in my voice.

"I'm here and about to get to your floor. The elevator is being a pain again. The one is shut down for repairs and this one has way too many people," she huffed. She was always impatient when came to clothes and me showing them off to her.

"Well my door is open for you to come on in." My voice sounded a tad bit more stable and agreeable.

"Perfect because I don't think I could juggle finding your key with all of these bags!"

"All of these bags? Lissa-" I was about to chastise her for spending way too much when she stumbled into my apartment living room with an armful of bags. Two garment bags, a make-up kit, a bag for hair supplies, and then her purse. She threw them all onto my sofa and smiled with her hands on her hips. "All those bags," I shook my head in disbelief of the sight that had taken over my living room.

"It's not that bad, Rose. You need to relax while I get you ready! The guys of New York City await!"

Lissa thrust a beige garment bag at me and shoved into my bedroom. I unzipped it to reveal an orange sundress with a braided, brown, faux leather belt that went around the hips. I sighed as I pulled the dress out of the bag and laid it out on my bed. I was always told that orange looked good against my tanned skin and I wasn't about to argue that fact. The situation where I had first heard that comment was what was killing me.

It was in the first week or so after Eris had been killed and Rose was wandering around Earth. I was living in Greece on the shore and was cleaning up my small home when I heard a voice behind me.

"Orange is a lovely color on such soft, Mediterranean skin."

I spun around to see Dimitri standing in the doorway of my kitchen. His dark hair that went down to his shoulders was down today, his crisp, white tunic was held in place by a black belt that matched his sandals. A gold pendent that had a cross and Angel wings was around his neck and told me what he truly was: and Angel of God, a messenger Angel and Gabriel's right hand man.

I ran and leapt into his arms and he caught me effortlessly. He laughed at my sudden outburst. I pressed my lips against his and only broke apart when I needed air.

"You came!" I practically squealed.

"Of course I would! I promised to come see you at least once a week. Gabriel didn't need me so I took the opportunity to see you." Dimitri smoothed my wild, curly hair away from my face and back into the ribbon that held it into place.

"I was beginning to worry that you wouldn't come. It will be the end of the week in two days and I started to panic," I admitted.

"There is no need. As long as you live on Earth, I'll come and see you." He stared into my eyes and I saw love and adoration in them. "I love you and I wouldn't miss a chance to see you."

Except, he did. For the first two years, he kept true to his promise. He arrived once a week at five in the afternoon and stayed the night with me only to leave in the morning. When the third year started, his visits started to become more spread out. As the decades went by, I started to see him maybe five or six times a year. Centuries passed and I saw less of him.

When I moved to a different country, he found me. When I changed with the times, so did he. When I expected him to come, he was a no show. I learned the hard way to not get your hopes up when your soul mate is an Angel. That and when the entire Heavenly Host hates you for your past sins. I guess that explains my evasiveness to church.

The last time I had seen the man, I lived in Paris. Now, I had made a life for myself in New York City as a very city famous advise columnist with a promising career. I was part of a world-renowned newspaper and I had a best friend who worked as a producer for "Good Morning America". I was living a life that most people dreamed of, and I was wanted to be a Mortal to cherish it. I also wanted the man I love to share it with, but that wasn't happening either.

I slipped the dress on over my head and tied the belt around my hips. I slipped on a pair of strapped heels and went out to my living room to find Lissa in a baby pink skirt that fell to her knees and a white halter-top. She swept a light shade of brown eye shadow over my eyes and outlined them with a smidge of liner. A brown gloss was added to my lips and I was set. As I played with my hair to make the curls fall right over my shoulders, Lissa painted her own eyes and lips and we waltzed out of the door and to the café, leaving my worries behind as best as I could.

**sorry for the delay! i've had to deal with working at the minor league baseball stadium that i work at and this was the only time that i could update! i hope you like this chapter though! -SagWarrior**


	5. Followed

I sipped my orange mango smoothie as Lissa stared starry-eyed out the window. She gasped or sighed every time a man walked by. Sometimes I got a little comment about how nice that guy's hair was or how cute this guy's face was. She then went off on a rant about her dream guy and how they were going to have a happy ever after. I didn't have the heart to tell her that a dream guy isn't all that it's chocked up to be.

"Oh Rose! Can't you just picture it? A nice little church, soft gossamer on the pew ends, baby's breath and honey suckle for flowers, and Mr. Perfect at the end of that long walk down the aisle. Oh! I cannot wait to get married!" Lissa gushed as her eyes trailed after a good-looking guy in a lime green polo and khaki shorts.

"Always the romantic aren't you Liss?" I smirked as I stuck my straw in my mouth for another mouthful of smoothie goodness.

"One of us has to be since you don't seem to be interested in anything but your avid readers," she scuffed.

"I have a very promising career that I have been working after and there is simply no time for dating and being cute. I have you for that." I pegged her with a look that said _that's the end of this part of the conversation _and looked through the stack of _Ask Rose_ letters to pick from for tomorrow's column.

"And as much as I love to see you excel in your lovely career, you need to get laid and soon! I can't take all of the crazy talk about you not wanting or having time to date. It's mental! I hope to God that you don't become one of those crazy old cat women when you get older. I will never see you again!

"Something tells me that you don't have to worry about that, Liss," I smirked.

"Good!" After a moment, she spoke again. "Rose, do you think that we'll actually meet a guy that will love us for who we are and not for our bodies?"

The question threw me completely off my feet. I stared at her for a moment before I smiled at her.

"Yeah I think so. You have a better chance than I do," I laughed a little.

I looked back down at my work and finished off my smoothie as Lissa babbled. I shuffled my papers once or twice as the words of people's problems popped out at me. The usual things came up through the tear stains, wrinkle lines, and smudged pencil. Women who's husbands left them for the babysitter, a teenager's cry for help as she enters puberty, an elder woman who wants advise on how to tell her daughter that she is making silly choices, and there was the occasional letter from a person that has read my column and wrote to me for the soul purpose of telling me that my advise sucks. Nothing new nor did any inspiration for the new spread screamed at me to write about. Perfect.

As I shuffled my papers again, an eery feeling crept over me. I put the papers in front of me down on the table and stared at the wooden top. Ever thing became blurry and noises were muffled. My skin crawled and I felt a cold breath on my neck.

"Rose?"

Lissa's voice brought me back to the cafe and made the feeling that I was being watched or followed flee from my body and mind.

"Uh...sorry. I was dazing." I shook the fog away from my mind to clear it.

"Obviously! You didn't even move when I told you that you had some guy giving you the once over from across the square!" Lissa was extremely annoyed, but that was not a problem to me. The fact that I had a guy watching me was.

"What did he look like?" I tried to keep my voice light and flippant. I didn't want her to know about the feeling that I had just moments ago.

"Really tall, black hair that went up in a spiked do, and super pale skin. It was almost a purple or blue which is totally weird. Oh! He was also dressed in all black. So not your type, Honey."

I was frozen in my seat. I felt my hands shake a little and I was glad that I wasn't holding my papers or Lissa would have seen just how bad my hands shook. I had seen that description of a man before. Only, his black hair was shoulder length and very Greek. His black clothes of the 21st century were swapped for a Greek tunic and belt. His skin was really a blue tint and the way you felt in his presence was the cold hand of death on your shoulder. Hades had been watching me.


	6. Limbo for an ExGoddess and a Way Out

I let Lissa walk me home after she snapped me out of my frozen position. She didn't question my behavior and I was grateful for that. She left me at the apartment lobby and she went off shopping. I ran to my apartment and locked the door shut behind me. It wouldn't have mattered if it was locked or not when it came to Hades, but it made me feel a bit better.

I threw my bag on the couch and stripped out of my dress. I changed into jeans and a black, fitted t-shirt. I washed the make up off my face and laced my converse onto my feet. Soon, I found myself pacing my living room and waiting for the God that crossed souls to the other side to pop up in front of me.

I was still pacing and wringing my hands when the kitchen timer went off in the kitchen. I jumped ten feet in the air and I ran to turn it off. Five o' clock. I looked at the timer in my hand before I threw it against a wall. I watched with tiny satisfaction as the shattered pieces of plastic rained down on the carpet.

My eyes burned with tears that were building behind them and I felt my knees threaten to go out from under me. The stress from today was starting to tear me apart bit by bit. Why did the Gods have to screw me over? They hated me when I ruled the realm of Chaos and now they are threatening to ruin my almost normal life as an immortal human. I couldn't catch a break!

A knock on my door made me straighten up and compose myself. You couldn't spot any clue that I almost had a melt down if you tried. I opened the door and I gasped at the sight in front of me.

A man with black, spiked hair, blue skin, and black clothes stood in my doorway. I took as step back at his full height loomed over me.

"Eris! So nice to see you again," Hades smiled a crooked smile as he let himself into my house.

"What are you doing here, Hades?" I demanded. Suddenly I felt rather like my old self when I was being threatened by the God.

"I want to talk. Surely you have time for that with you busy schedule," he mocked me.

"I don't have time for Gods who don't know how to butt out of my life, if that is what you were hinting at," I snapped.

"Eris, Eris, Eris. Your temper hasn't changed much. The only difference that I can see now is that this building isn't falling from an earthquake," Hades smirked as he fell into a plush chair that was across from my sofa.

"I don't go by Eris anymore," I spat through gritted teeth.

"Oh that's right. You're playing human and changed your name when your precious Angel saved you from Zeus, Athena, and Ares. Very brave of him." Hades clapped a few times before he laid his hands on the arms of the chair.

At the mention of Dimitri, I was suddenly very close to my boiling point. My rage was barely contained under my skin and I tried my hardest not to lash out at Hades. It wouldn't have done anything anyway.

"Get. Out." I said in a deadly voice.

"I only just got here! Plus, I have some information that I bet you are dying to hear!" He was clearly enjoying my temper tantrum.

"Speak then." I crossed my arms over my chest and waited.

"You have been in this limbo state for too long, my dear. I told you when I found out that you were a target that there was a way for a demi-god to become completely human without Zeus granting it. Right now, without that other way, you are going to roam the Earth till Judgment Day because Zeus is not going to grant you mortality. Everyone on Olympus knows that. What you need to do is find the River Styx."

"I already know where it is. It flows in your kingdom of the Underworld." I rolled my eyes at his stupidity.

"Yes, but you need a God's permission to come and go alive. Otherwise, you'd have to die to come visit me and reach the River." Hades folded his hands in front of him.

"So what, I'm supposed to drop everything that I have going on here to go see you at the River Styx? If you don't remember the last time I took your word as law, I ended up dying days before I was supposed too because you got the information mixed up." I pegged him with a look that begged him to argue with me.

"I rule the River so I think that I'm a fairly credible source for information on it. And no, I don't intend for you too come now or even tomorrow, but you will eventually meet a man, marry him, and want to grow old with him. But you can't do that when you're immortal now can you?" A taunting smile crept over Hades' face. "But that's right, you're still waiting for you Angel to show up at five every night. Good luck with that one dear."

"How dare you bring Dimitri into this?" I screamed.

"I thought it would be obvious. He has abandoned you! He has forgotten you! He wants nothing to do with an ex-Goddess of Chaos! He's an Angel! They are shallow creatures who think that just because they have wings and a shiny halo they own the place! We Gods have to keep together and you need to move on! Take my advise. It's free." Hades then left in a ring of fire.

I stared at the spot where Hades had been. I felt my rage simmer down to pain, hurt, and sorrow as the truth of Hades' words finally got through my skull. I started to gasp for air as my breath became more shallow and tears fell from my eyes. My hands shook and my knees became loose. I fell on my hands and knees and sobbed into the carpet. My anger at the Angels and Gods for making me the person that I was, my heartache of losing Dimitri to the Angels, and other sudden, strong emotions crashed into me. I cried that night until I fell asleep.


	7. Choices

It's been a hundred and eighty-one years since I've seen my Rose. I hadn't seen her beautiful, loving face in over a century. It's all because of Gabriel.

After I had stabbed Eris and killed off the Goddess and Rose was born from the ashes, I was a hero in Heaven. Gabriel made my rank higher and I was welcomed back into the gates of Heaven with celebration. Gabriel had known that I love Rose and he let me go to her when I wasn't working. It started out fine, but it soon became obvious that he didn't like that I was courting an ex-Goddess. He made me work, and not just important assignments, it was little things that lower level Angels could handle on their own easily.

I felt like a traitor to Rose. I promised her the day that I left her on Earth that I would see her as much as possible. That promise seemed to break the more I was forced to stay away from her. I wanted to be with her forever. I wanted to hold her and be near her. I needed to be with her, but Gabriel's hatred towards her has made that near impossible. I realize that now.

I sat on a cloud that was far from the main hustle and bustle of Heaven. I needed to think and be on my own for a moment. Remember that I had a girl down on Earth that held my heart. I was lost in those big, brown eyes of hers. So lost, I didn't realize that someone was sitting beside me.

Dimitri,a soft voice spoke.

I turned to see Christian beside me and looking down at the layers of clouds beneath us.

Yes?"

are you still thinking about Eris?"

I nodded. "Her name is Rose now. She changed after Eris dead."

Christian nodded in response. I know. You tell me every time I mess up. How long has it been?"

"Hundred and eighty-one years and counting." I looked at my folded hands.

It came out in a whisper.

What about you?"

"Three days." I heard a smile in his voice.

I looked at my friend and gave him an appreciative smile. "I really do thank you and Lissa for doing this for me. Since I can't see her, it makes me feel better that Lissa is watching her."

"You're welcome. I know that you would do the same if the situation was reversed. Lissa likes it down there anyway. Why else do you think she loves her Angel duties being a guardian Angel and all."

"I am still surprised that Gabriel hasn't noticed her absents yet. She's been gone for almost three years.I said astonished.

"I know, but she and Mia have a plan made up for something like that. If Gabriel comes knocking, they know what to do,Christian said. The tone in his voice told me that he had no idea what their plan was.

"Let me ask you a question" ,he started. "If you love Rose so much and can't stand to be away from her, why don't you go to her permanently?"

I looked at him like he was nuts. "Like, fall from Grace?"

"Is there any other way to be like her?"

"Yeah, stay an Angel! She's an immortal human! She'll outlive me if I fall."

"But is that better than dying before her or watching her through Lissa's eyes for the rest of eternity?Christian shrugged as he made his point.

I thought it over in my mind. Turning over every aspect of Christian's suggestion.

"Rumor has it that there is a way for her to become mortal. Since she is Greek and doesn't believe in God, she has to get permission from Zeus to become mortal. No way is he going to grant her request. She's caused too much damage for too long as Eris. Her punishment is eternity as a immortal human.

There is word that if she drinks from the River Styx that she will be mortal. It kills the immortality in her. I also heard that it has healing powers but that seems like a stretch since it kills immortality,Christian noted.

"No!I snapped. Christian flinched.

"What? What did I say?He yelped.

"She can't know about that! If she does, Hades could kill her or something could happen and then I'd loose her.I was panicking at the thought of her getting hurt for this.

"But what if she wants to be mortal. She has to not want to walk the Earth forever,Christian reasoned.

My voice was a little harder with anger.

"what is your issue? Is it the fact that she has to go through the Underworld? Or is it because if she's mortal and your not, you'd loose her because you don't want to fall?"

I was silent for a moment.

"I can't stand the thought of her dying and me not being there to be with her. I have worked hard for this job and now I have to choose if this rumor is true."

"It's not that hard of a choice if you really love her."

Christian left me then with my thoughts and his last words. He was right. Rose was much more important than any job I could ever have.


	8. What I Need

RPOV

It has been a week since Hades dropped by at my apartment. I had tried my hardest to push the evening into the dark box that kept all of my evil memories locked away, but it wasn't working. Everytime someone walked around me in all black, I froze and blanched. I'd freak out at the sight of a flame, and once I even screamed when the gas stove in my kitchen blew a ring of flames bigger than I was used to. I was losing it.

In my office, I typed up a column piece before saving it to my hard-drive, closing the laptop, and taking off my glasses. I only wore them for the sake of keeping up my charade so I had to act like staring at a computer screen all day made my eyes sore like everyone else. I had just put my head in my hands when my phone rang.

Without lifting my eyes to the receiver, I answered. "Rose Hathaway."

"Hey Girl!" Lissa's voice came through to my eye loud and clear, "how's work?"

"Boring as hell. My eyes are sore and I can't feel my finger tips from typing so much," I said as I tucked the phone into the crook of my shoulder and poked my fingers with my nails.

"Urg! How much have you written today?"

"Maybe three column ideas. I'm not completely sure though," I answered rubbing my forehead.

"Wanna go out for a coffee tonight then? Get your mind off things?"

"God that sounds perfect!" I sighed. Whoever set this girl in my life I owed them big time.

"Okay cool! I'll pick you up from the office in about two hours. I have a meeting with one of the directors here at work and when I am done I'll come get you."

"That's perfect. Alberta has been breathing down my neck all day so two hours will get me caught up to her demands." I started up another blank document and started on another column.

"Awesome! Hey, I got to go so I'll talk to you in a bit!" Lissa shouted hurriedly as she hung up.

I put the phone down and went back to work. It didn't actually last long. I had finished the last column that I was working on and sent it to my printer. I put all four columns in a folder and dropped it off in Alberta's mail box. When I returned to my office, I locked the door and turned off the lights.

I put my head down on my desk and took a deep breath. I needed a vacation. I needed a break from all of the bullshit that I had going on in my life. I needed…him. As much as I hated to say it, or even think it, I needed Dimitri. I just couldn't have him.


	9. My Biggest Fear

DPOV

I sat around with Adrian and Ivan in the lounge hall. Adrian was going on about Sydney and how perfect she was for him. Ivan would make disgusted faces with me every time Adrian opened his mouth. Ivan didn't like relationships. His last relationship ended terribly when he dated an Angel of Destiny and she was caught kissing another Angel. Ivan has since then hated the very idea of dating or long lasting relationships.

I was about to cut Adrian off as he was about to use some great metaphor to describe another feature of Sydney's when Christian came running in.

"Lissa's here and she needs to talk to you," he said to me.

With that, I hopped up out of my seat and followed him to a small room that Guardians used when they got their assignments. Lissa sat at the head of the long table that sat in the middle of the room. She was leaning forward with her elbows propped up, her hands folded, and her head bowed. She looked like she was praying, but she was actually thinking. She looked up when I pulled a chair out to sit.

"Dimitri. Long time no see," she said in greeting. She smiled a bit, but that smile told me that she was hiding something.

"Lissa, what did you need to tell me?" I asked softly as I skipped the greetings.

Lissa looked at me with sad, worried, scared eyes. "Rose has a tail, and not just any tail. Hades has been following her for a week or so now. I thought it was just a friendly thing seeing that they were friends when she was Eris, but the more I see him, the more sinister he turns out the be."

I felt my hands ball up into fists on the table top. My blood began to boil and I felt my face get heated. This couldn't be happening. I couldn't let Rose talk to him about the River. She couldn't know that she had the choice the change her mortality. It could kill her and then I'd be lost.

I felt a hand on my shoulder and it squeezed, keeping me in my seat.

"Dimitri," Christian started. "This is her choice if she wants this. You can't stop what is to come. Rose needs to make this choice on her own."

I stood up and turned on him. Anger and fear was plain as day on my face. My hands were still tight fists.

"I can't loss her! If she tries to go down this path, there is a pretty good chance that I won't ever get her back!" My voice crackled with the stress and severity of this issue.

Lissa moved beside me and put a hand on my arm. "I'll do my best to protect her, and if she makes any rash decisions like a vacation or something, I'll tell you. I'll also keep an eye on Hades and make sure that he doesn't get too close." Her words sounded like a promise. It was also my only lifeline to help save Rose.

I nodded and hugged my friend. What she was doing for me was a huge favor and I couldn't thank her enough.


	10. My Decision

RPOV

I sat on my couch with my laptop propped up on my lap. The TV was playing a Disney movie that I couldn't quite make out. The house that I was in looked like something out of a Pottery Barn Magazine. The sofa I was on was plush and brown suade. The hardwood floors were covered by a fuzzy, pale green carpet that looked like it was happily walked on, and there were four, dark wood book shelves lining one wall. Books and photos littered the shelves. A window was beside me and showed me that I was in the woods. It looked magical.

The serene calm of the oasis was shattered when two piercing screams followed by laughter erupted from down the hall. I moved the laptop to the glass coffee table and I followed the screaming until I came to a room that was obviously a boy's. Tan walls with splashes of red, blue, and green paint held a twin sized bed, a dresser, and a bookshelf inside. Toys and action figures covered the carpet.

"Mommy!" A little girl's squeal broke through to my ears.

I looked over to the bed to see little arms and legs kicking around a huge body of a man who had his back to me.

"Mommy! Get Daddy off!" the little girl yelled again laughing.

"Mommy can't save you now, Lana!" The man growled playfully.

I froze for a moment. Dimitri was in this room, playing with two children that were calling me mommy and him daddy. A huge smile broke over my face as this realization settled into my mind.

I snuck up closer to Dimitri and peered over his shoulder. A boy with dark brown hair and matching eyes was trying to pry his father's hand off his tummy as he was being tickle. His sister, Lana, had long, curly, hair that matched mine, but eyes that were her grandmother's. She had given up fighting her dad's tickling hand and was laughing so hard she was crying.

Catching my son's eye, I put a finger to my lips to tell him to be quiet. I reached down and started to tickle Dimitri's soft spot under his ribs. I felt his jump at the sudden contact and he rolled back on top of me. I moved and straddled his waist so I was on top of him tickling him. The kids jumped off the bed and joined me as we ganged up on Dimitri laughing.

Dimitri's laugh rumbled deep and loud as his family piled onto him. Lana's was sharp and piercing like bells that were being rung too hard, but god it was precious. My son's laugh was that of a ten-year-old; loud, deeper than his sister's, yet still childish. Then mine was thrown into the mix and the sound that our voices made was bliss to me. I wanted to relish in this moment forever.

Soon, the kids fell off Dimitri tired and worn out from the excitement. I stayed on Dimitri but I laid my head down on his chest and curled up into him. He wrapped his big arms around me and played with my hair.

"I love you," I mumbled.

Dimitri kissed my lips before answering me. "I love you too, Rose."

Lana's little head popped up off the floor and looked at us with a look that had disgust and happiness in it.

"Look, Levi! Mommy and Daddy are kissing!" she squealed.

Levi looked at us and grabbed his sister's hand. "Run while they aren't looking!" He ordered with a mischievous look in his eyes.

Dimitri and I laughed but let them run from the room. When they left, Dimitri looked up at me and moved in to kiss me again. Our lips were so close to touching, they were so close, I breathed in his scent and closed my eyes as our lips tou-

_BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP!_

I jumped in the air as my alarm clock's alarm woke me up from the best dream that I have ever had in centuries. I hit the button to turn of the alarm and fell out of bed. I went to the shower and turned on the water. I hopped in and let the heat and the water pressure work out the knots in my back and shoulders. The feelings and happiness from the dream still fogged up my mind.

My emotions filled my body up with shakes and tears. I craved the sound of my children's laughter, I needed the feeling of Dimitri's arms around me securely as we watched our children. _Our_ _children._

Tears fell from my eyes at will. They flowed and didn't show any signs of stopping. I let myself cry until I was for sure that I was going to be late for work and got out of the shower. I put on enough make-up to cover my puffy eyes and dressed in a pair of black slacks, a purple wrap blouse, and black heels. I pinned my hair up and left after I grabbed my bags.

I walked to my office while looking at my phone. I found that if you act like you were looking at something like a phone or a packet of paper, no one will talk to you. I locked myself in my office and immediately sat down behind my desk. I folded my hands under my chin and I stared out the window.

As I watched downtown Manhattan, I thought about my options. I could take Hades' offer and become mortal and have the life that I just dreamt about, or I could stay in this state of immortal humanity without a single way of becoming a mother to two adorable children. The only thing that was puzzling me was how could I have either without Dimitri beside me? If I became mortal, Dimitri will still be an Angel and I couldn't get to him to have my perfect family. If I stay immortal, chances are that I will spend eternity alone without him.

After more thinking and turning things over in my head, I came to a conclusion. I knew what I was going to do.

I picked up my office phone and checked the time. 10:12. Lissa would be at the television station for another hour or so and wouldn't be able to talk. I called anyway. After a few rings, I heard Lissa's perky voice.

"Hi! You have reached Vasalisa's phone. I can't answer your call right now but leave your name and number and I'll get back to you as soon as I can!"

I waited for the beep and started my message.

"Hey Liss, it's Rose. I'm taking a couple days off and going out of town to see an old friend. I know it's kind of a snap decision but I think it's the right one for me right now. I'll talk to you when I leave tomorrow morning and I'll call you when I get back. Hopefully I can get out of this rut that I have been stuck in for a while. I love you, bye."

I hung up and prepared myself for calling the God that had given me the option that I have chosen.


	11. Danger

I made sure that the coast was clear before I moved my desk chair under the door knob of my office door and pushed the desk back against the wall. I moved the chairs that sat across from my desk out of the way and I stood in the center of the room. I closed my eyes and cleared my throat.

"Hades! I have a soul that needs your guidance!" I said in a loud and clear voice.

A moment after I had spoken the summons, a ring of fire burst up from the floor and unveiled Hades in all his God-like glory. He had a sinister smile on his face and has hands were clasped behind his back.

"Rosie! What a surprise! I am quite surprised that it has taken you this long to make a choice. It's been what, three weeks? I'm surprised you actually took that log to think this through." He was taunting me, but I wasn't too upset about it.

I crossed my arms. "I want to take your offer. I-I need to take your offer."

Hades studied me for a moment. "May I ask why?"

I shrugged. "I had a dream that had me wanting a mortal life."

"Ah! Love and family and the promise of a bright future I take it? Fine with me. When do you want to make the change?"

"Tomorrow. I need to make it look like I am going on a vacation for the weekend. Tomorrow is Saturday and it won't look too suspicious if I take a couple days for myself. I'll call for you in the morning." I answered.

"Lovely! Allows me time to get things ready for your delightful visit!"

Hades left in a ring of fire and I was alone. I put my office back together and finished my day's work. I left without saying a word to anyone or leaving my office until I had to at the end of the workday.

At home, I packed a suitcase with all the things that I would need it I was to go to the mountain cabin that Lissa and I go to on occasion. I stashed the suitcase under my sofa and slipped a note in my landlord's mailbox explaining where I was supposedly going for the next two days.

That night, I made a dinner of steak salad and drank a glass of red wine. I left the bottle out of the counter for later and cleaned up my apartment. I ended up turning on my old Elvis CD that I got when he was a big star and changed into a man's button up shirt that I bought because it reminded me of Dimitri, and a pair of boy shorts underwear. I let my hair down and danced and drank the night away.

I didn't have a care in the world. I didn't care that I would probably have a hangover in the morning, or that my phone was dead and on the floor, or that I was an ex-Goddess that was helplessly in love with an Angel and about to become mortal. I just let Elvis's velvety, sexy voice wash all my worried away as I fell asleep to _Love Me Tender._

The next morning, I woke up in my bed with the shirt hanging off of my shoulders and still in my bra and underwear. My hair was a huge mess, and I had a slight headache that aspirin could fix with a cup of coffee.

I jumped up and ran a brush through my hair and put on a pot of coffee. I took an aspirin as I changed into a pair of jeans and a black, long sleeved shirt. Puma's were on my feet and I pulled my hair back over my shoulders.

I took a mug of coffee to my laptop as I checked my email for anything from Alberta. Finding nothing, I started to work on a column that I had started yesterday. I worked on it until the clock on my DVD player read 9:24. Leaving the laptop on with the intentions of going back to my work, I put the empty mug in the sink and turned to leave when I came face to face with Hades.

"Oh my God!" I yelped as I jumped back.

"You don't believe in God, Rose." Hades pointed out.

"It was the reaction you get when you scare the living hell out of me! What were you thinking? I was supposed to call you when I was ready!" I yelled as my pulse raced.

"I didn't feel like waiting and the process takes a while. I wanted to get started." A cruel grin split Hades' lips.

I felt my guard go up around me at the sight of Hades' grin. I didn't like it, but when did I ever like what Hades did or looked like? I had actually always feared Hades to a degree, but you'd never know unless I told you. My power had always been greater than his. That is, until I fell from Tartarus.

Hades held out a hand. "Shall we?"

I looked at it and squared my shoulders. This is what I wanted. I wanted mortality. I wanted Dimitri. I wanted our children, our future.

I reached out and placed my hand in the God's. He grasped it and I felt fire bloom up from under my feet as we were transported to the Underworld.


	12. The Horror

LPOV

Keeping up with human appearances drove me out of my mind sometimes. With the Fourth of July fast approaching, my directors wanted to do so much for the spaces in between news segments. I had meeting after meeting about what new and exciting thing can be brought to the public. My phone rang only once and I let it go to voicemail. It would have to wait until I got out of here.

When it was almost 9:30 at night, I finally left the office. I went out to grab take out Chinese because I was too tired to cook and went home. After I stepped out of my heels and traded my dress for a pair of pajama shorts and shirt, I checked my phone. One message from Rose.

_"Hey Liss, it's Rose. I'm taking a couple days off and going out of town to see an old friend. I know it's kind of a snap decision but I think it's the right one for me right now. I'll talk to you when I leave tomorrow morning and I'll call you when I get back. Hopefully I can get out of this rut that I have been stuck in for a while. I love you, bye."_

I got a feeling that this wasn't a good idea, but since she said that she was calling me before she left, I let it go.

The next morning, I woke up to my alarm clock blaring in my ear. I turned it off and got ready for work. Since it was a Saturday, I didn't have to be there as early as I did on a weekday. I checked my phone and found no new messages. When I got to the office and the news started, I checked my phone again before turning it on silent. Nothing. At 10:30, I was getting nervous that something had happened.

During commercial, I found a small hallway and called Rose's cell. It went straight to voicemail. Crap. I called her landlord only to be told that she left for the cabin this morning according to a note that she gave him last night. I didn't believe it for one minute. Rose always had her cell on her.

I ran out of the building and up to the rooftop. Using Angel Magic to cover me, I flew to Heaven. I needed to tell Dimitri and Christian what was going on.

RPOV

Hades and I appeared in the center of the Underworld. I had only been there a couple of times and with good reason. Dark, hot, dry cave walls closed us off from the rest of the world. There was little light in the whole place and it came from torches that were spread far apart from each other mounted on the walls. In front of me, the River Styx flowed throughout the Underworld. It glistened black in the fire's glow and it looked dead and cold.

"Your destination, My Lady," Hades waved towards the River with a grand flash of his hand. He bowed slightly as if introducing the River and I to each other.

I walked towards the edge of the bank and looked down into the inky black water. "What do I do now that I am here?"

"We wait."

I turned to question Hades' words when I saw that he was looking at me with hard, cold eyes. His hands were behind his back and his head was bowed just enough that he held my eye contact. It looked so frightening.

"Wait?" I repeated.

"Yes, wait. We wait to see if you Angel comes to your rescue."

"What are you talking about?"

I felt my stomach knot up and my hands became clammy. My pulse started to race and my breathing became hard to control. I had a bad feeling about this.


	13. The Horror part 2

DPOV

Christian, Adrian, Ivan, and I sat around a fireplace in one of the lounge areas that we always hung out at. We were all laughing at something that Ivan told us when Beating wings caught our ears. We turned to see Lissa flying to our cloud with enough speed to worry us. We stood up as she landed.

"Rose is in trouble. She left a message on my cell last night and hasn't called me back like she said she would. She's not answering now. I feel like something bad has happened to her." Lissa gasped out. She was tired from the flight, but the adrenaline of the situation kept her high wired.

Lissa's message was all I needed for me to follow her. Using Angel Magic, we made ourselves invisible to human eyes and flew to Rose's apartment in New York. So this was where she had been hiding.

Lissa opened the apartment with the spare key Rose gave her and we rushed in. Inside, we found nothing damaged or broken. It looked like Rose had cleaned the house before she disappeared. The only things out of place was a mug in the sink, a pair of glasses by an open laptop, and the CD player was on repeat with some male artist singing a song about wooden hearts.

Lissa ran over to the laptop and clicked a button. The black screen came to life and revealed a document with writing on it. I picked up the glasses and held them in my hands waiting for Lissa to say something. After a few moments she did.

"Rose was working. She must have taken a break because this article is nowhere near finished. She always writes more than three paragraphs."

"What was she writing?" I asked partly out of curiosity but I also hoped that it would help me find her.

"Rose is a famous advise columnist here in Manhattan. She was writing a column when she disappeared." She looked at the glasses in my hands before she started to roam around the apartment looking for clues.

I looked around me and took in my setting. I was in Rose's house. After over a century, I was finally close to her. But her disappearance made this event a cruel one. If she hadn't been missing, I could be holding her right now. But it was also her disappearance that was bringing us closer. I felt my heart squeeze with the need to be with her and I prayed that she would be alright until I found her. I needed her alive.

"Dimitri!" Lissa called from the bedroom. I sprinted in to see her holding a cell phone in her hand. "It's dead. She let it die and didn't take it with her."

My foundation of a firm reality started to sway. If she couldn't be contacted via her phone, it was one less lifeline I had to find her.

Lissa, seeing that I was starting to fall apart, hugged me and rubbed circles into my arm.

"She'll be fine. You'll get to her before something bad happens."

I nodded and shook my head to keep it clear and focused. "Keep looking. There has to be something that will help us find her."

RPOV

"What are you talking about, Hades?" My voice shook with anger of being tricked into a trap and the fear of not seeing Dimitri or the light of day again.

"You should know what I'm talking about, but it seems that you have lost your touch, Eris." Hades moved a few steps closer to me. "I have been planning this for centuries! Ever since your death certificate was signed by Zeus all those years ago."

I moved a step away from Hades, but I was still acutely aware that the bank of the Rive left me little space to move. This was not going the way I expected.

"You see, Eris," Hades kept moving on," I have loved you for centuries. I have been in love with you ever since you came into existence in the ancient times, but you wouldn't see me as anything but a friend that went along with all of your mischief. I waited to se if your feelings would change and I eventually came to the conclusion that your black heart had no room for love. That is, until you met the Angel."

I felt my eyes widen in horror. With every new piece of information, my stomach knotted tighter and tighter. I started to feel slightly nauseous and my clammy hands became colder than ever.

"When I came to Tartartus that one day to warn you about Zeus' plan, I was also there to offer you a way to live as a Goddess. I was going to ask you to marry me and become the Queen of the Underworld. Zeus had pledged long ago that he would not kill a married God or Goddess. But when I arrived, you were too busy fancying the Angel.

Right then, I knew that you were in love with him and therefore I had no chance with you. Then I got to thinking, if you can love the Angel, the enemy of our people, than I might still have a chance.

I waited for you to change your mind after you fell from Tartarus. I waited for you to call me, but every time I came to see you, the Angel was there. You were still madly in love with him that you couldn't look out your window to see me standing there." Hades' voice was rising in anger and the ground shook slightly under my feet.

"You didn't give me so much as a sideways glance when I came to spy on you because your love blinded you. Your love has made you weak, Eris. I realized that when I came to you weeks ago. When I told you those lies about the Angel betraying you, you fell for them. You believed the lies that I feed you because you were so far gone with him! And now, you have made my plan work perfectly."

"What plan?" I asked shakily.

"I'm glad you asked." Hades held out a hand and a black bow and arrow appeared in his hand. "I'm certain that you know what this is, Eris?"

"Yes, but you can't us it. It can't hurt either Dimitri or me." This fact gave me a little bit of hope.

"You are right, but with the help of lethal River water, it can kill any Angel that touches it." Hades' smile became so cruel and menacing that I gasped in horror at the news of Dimitri's death sentence and the evil in his smile.

**Hey guys! Two things, one: there is actually a song by Elvis called Wooden Heart. It's absolutely amazing! It's from his G.I. Blues CD so look it up! Two: I know that i am skipping POV's a lot. I wanted this next little bit to be like one of those action movie sequences where you see the bad guy working and the good guy fighting to safe the girl. You may not like the idea, but hey, it keeps the story moving. -SagWarrior  
**


	14. Love's dark sides

DPOV

I moved back to the kitchen and living room while Lissa swept the bedroom again. The mug was cold and the coffee pot had cooled down as well. She must have disappeared earlier in the morning.

I stood with my hands on either side of the sink and let my head hang down. How had I let this happen? If I hadn't been so lazy and disobeyed my orders to not go to Earth, I would have stopped Rose from leaving.

I kept beating myself up with the 'what if' questions when I caught a whiff of a smell that was out of place. I turned around and inhaled a deep breath. Fire and brimstone. Hades.

My vision clouded red as my anger boiled under my skin. Hades had gotten to Rose and kidnapped her.

"Lissa!" I thundered.

She ran out of the bedroom and looked half scared out of her mind.

"What is it?" She asked scared.

"Hades took her." I spat. I was going to make the bastard pay.

I knew the way to the Underworld and I took off as fast as my wings could take me. _Stay safe Rose. I'm on my way._

RPOV

"You knew this and you let me believe your lies!" I yelled. I was furious at myself for believing Hades and his deceit.

"Yes I did, but my thinking is, you can come with me on your own free will, you will come to me to save the Angel's life, or you will come to me after he is dead." Hades' twisted sneer grew bigger.

"I will never go to you!" I screamed. Tears threatened to fall from my eyes as the reality of the situation sank in. There was no scenario where I came out on top and left this place.

"But Eris, you will. You can't leave without my permission so you might as well get comfortable." Hades twirled the bow in his hand while the other hand held the poisoned arrow.

I felt a tear roll down my cheek and fall off my chin. The heat of the Underworld immediately dried it once the salt water hit the ground.

"Your lover will loss you and I will get great satisfaction in watching him crumble under my thumb! Once again, the Gods will rule over the Angels!" Hades' voice rang out in the caves and made me flinch.

"But your promise to me?" I asked. "The promise to make me mortal?"

"That promise is still in affect. It will be your reward for helping me kill you Angel."

A sob broke out of my throat and tears fell from my eyes. My mortality and a lifetime of marriage to Hades was what I got for the death of my love, my soul mate, and other half. My knees felt weak and I started to feel dizzy. It took everything I had not to fall onto the hot ground.


	15. Through Dimitri's Eyes

DPOV

I flew to the mouth of the cave that housed the Underworld. Without hesitation, I flew in and followed the tunnels to the heart of the Underworld. The River Styx was my guide because I had a feeling that both Rose and Hades would be there. I heard Hades' voice ring out around the cave and I knew that I was getting close.

I flew until I came upon an open arena and I saw something that made my heart shatter. Hades was standing tall with a bow and arrow in his hands and he was talking to Rose, who looked like her world was falling apart. I watched as she made a sound that sounded like a sob and a strangled cough.

The scene of my angel falling apart made me so angry that I was fighting to keep control. I needed to assess the situation and tactfully execute my plan to get Rose to safety. That didn't happen very well when I saw Hades come close to Rose and stroke her cheek.

I flew down and rammed into Hades hard enough to knock him sideways and away from Rose. She gave a scream and jumped a little too far back and started to fall into the River. I grabbed her arm and her hip and pulled her against me. Her arms responded immediately to my touch and wrapped around my neck, crushing her to me.

"Dimitri!" She gasped as she hugged me to her.

"I'm here Love. You're safe with me." I smoothed her wild hair and gripped her close to me. I needed the physical contact after over a century of not being near her.

"How sentimental." I looked over Rose's head to see Hades looking absolutely disgusted with the scene of Rose and I being together.

I felt Rose look up and see Hades and she gripped the front of my tunic in her hands hard. She coward into me and kept me close. I moved so that she was still in my arms, but my body shielded hers.

At my action, Hades smirked.


	16. Shattered

RPOV

I loved having Dimitri hold me. I needed his arms around me and his fingers in my hair. I gripped him close to me as if he was a ghost and if I let go even the tiniest bit, he'd evaporate from me all together. Then Hades had to go and ruin it.

"How sentimental."

Dimitri glared at him with all of the hatred in the world in those beautiful brown eyes. He moved me so that he had and arm that wrapped around my body to my hip while his body shielded me from Hades. Realizing this was exactly what Hades wanted, I broke out of Dimitri's hold as Hades raised his poisoned arrow and shot it.

I felt something sharp bite into my side and the world slowed down. As I fell to the ground, I felt strong arms catch my upper body and head to protect it form hitting the ground. I heard a muffled scream of rage and Dimitri shout something. My vision blurred as I felt the life drain from me. The last thing I saw before everything went black was Dimitri's face and I thank God for sending him to me.

DPOV

Rose broke through my hold on her and put her body in front of mine. I had no idea what was going on until I saw the arrow pierce Rose's side and her body crumbled to the floor.

"NOOOO!" I roared as her brown eyes widened and her lips parted. I reached out just in time to grab her head and waist so she didn't hurt herself even more when she landed.

I knelt with Rose in my lap. Her breathing became ragged as she started to slip into unconsciousness.

"No! Rose! Stay with me! Please stay with me! I just got you back! I love you!" I yelled at her. She didn't respond to me or to the shout of anger that erupted from Hades.

I cradled her body close to mine as I felt her body go limp in my arms. Her chest stopped rising and falling and her eyes closed slowly. Tears fell from my eyes as I sobbed silently over the loss of my soul mate, my love, my angel.

I cried for Lord only knows how long before I heard something that made me look up. Hades had put another arrow in the bow and had pulled the string back, taking aim at me.

"You made me loss her, now I will enjoy watching your soul wander the Underworld for eternity!" He shouted with hatred.

I stayed there on the ground in shock and anger. I still felt protective over Rose's body even though Hades was pointing a lethal arrow at me. I still tried to protect the love of my life with my body as I bowed my head and tried to cover her. There was no need to though.

A loud clap of thunder and a flash of lightning filled the caves and when everything cleared and I could see again, Zeus stood in front of me and Hades.


	17. I can't Leave Her

Zeus looked down at me and then turned his angry glare on Hades. In turn, the God of the Underworld flinched a bit. Zeus turned his back to me and stared down Hades. I could tell by the way the electricity in the air was tangible; something was about to go down that would end badly.

"HADES!" Zeus thundered. The ceiling shook and the ground vibrated so much that my grip on Rose's body in my lap. "How dare you go against your oath as a God! You deliberately went against the laws of Olympus and plotted to kill an Angel!"

Hades smiled up at a Zeus while fear and repentance. "But Zeus, he killed Eris! I was only returning the favor."

"The Angel did something that I was going to do anyway! His mistake has been forgiven! Something that you will never be granted!" Zeus' body and face loomed over Hades' leaving only a breath's spaces in between the two Gods.

"Hey Zeus, Brother. You must understand that that Angel stole from me Eris! She would be mine if not her him! Let me have my revenge!" Hades' fear was turning into mass anger and rage.

"That Angel did something that you couldn't! I sent you to Tartarus all those years ago, not to warn Eris about my coming like you did, but to kill her! You failed at your task and you have failed me. As punishment, I will let the Angel live and leave the Underworld in one piece." Zeus' rage was still shaking everything in sight and I felt the foundations of my very soul quaked with the anger rolling off Zeus.

"WHAT? You can't do that! I am the Lord of the Underworld and I rule this area! You cannot overrule me!" Hades pointed at me and glared, his black eyes blazing. "That Angel and that girl will not leave this world!"

Protectively, I clutched Rose closer to me. My eyes hardened in hatred towards the God and if Zeus wasn't standing in my way and Rose wasn't…gone, I'd be up in front of him beating him to death.

"I AM THE GOD OF GODS AND MY WORD GOES! THE ANGEL GOES FREE!" If it were absolutely possible, Zeus' voice got louder than it was moments ago.

Hades screamed in rage and anger. Zeus turned his back on Hades and looked at me with a look of disdain and slight disgust.

"You are allowed to leave the Underworld, Angel. Leave and don't come back to this place. I have forgiven you for intervening with my planned murder of Eris, but if you come to see any other Gods or Goddess' you will not be a friend to them."

I stared at the God. I was being granted leave of this horrible place, but I didn't bring myself to feel happy about it.

"I can't, My Lord. Not without Rose." My voice was calmer and more controlled than I thought it would.

"She is mine! She cannot leave! She is dead!" Hades roared as he lunged for me and Rose's body.

Zeus caught this action from his hawk-like vision and grabbed Hades around the throat.

"You have defied me for the last time Hades. You will be no more!"

Zeus gave a mighty yell as he hurled Hades into the River Styx. I couldn't take my eyes off the scene as Hades screamed and fought against the suddenly raging currents of the River. The River swiftly started to move down river and swept Hades out of sight.

"If I were you, Angel, I would leave." Zeus said in a hard tone.

"I can't, I already told you that I won't leave Rose here. I need her to live!" I exclaimed.

Zeus looked down at Rose and then up at me. He reached out with both arms. I looked at him warily.

"I will help you, but this is the last favor that I will grant you. Give me the girl."

I gingerly place Rose in his arms and watched in horror as he held her over the River. I was so scared that he would drop her that my muscles were coiled and ready to spring to get her. My wings were at the ready.

Zeus held Rose over the waters and slowly lowered her in. She barely was under the surface when he lifted her up and placed her on the ground. Her jeans and long sleeved shirt clung to her body for they were drenched. Her wild hair splayed out around her face on the hot ground.

Zeus stepped back and looked at me. "Now we wait."


	18. Unfinished Business

I watched my angel's body for what seemed like an eternity, but it was only a few minutes. I stared with worry clearly plastered on my face. The wait that Zeus said we had to endure seemed to take far more time than he led me to believe. I stared at Rose's eyes, her chest, her waist. Any thing that would show me that she was awake and breathing.

Then, suddenly, when I was beginning to think that all hope was lost, Rose's eyes snapped open and she coughed up River water that went down her throat when she was submerged. I flew to her side and helped her lift her head to clear the water from her airways. When she was done coughing and had calmed down a bit, She looked up at me. It was a quick look before she recognized that I was the one holding her head and had my hand on her cheek. She threw herself at me and wrapped her arms around my neck and pulled herself to me hard and fast.

"Dimitri!" she gasped.

"Oh God, Rose. You're awake! You're awake and alright." I pulled away and put my hands on both sides of her face and looked into those brown eyes I loved so much. "You're alright." I was trying to wrap my mind around the fact that she was alive and in my arms more than state a fact.

"Yes and I won't ever let you go. Not when I came so close to never seeing your face again." Tears fell from Rose's eyes and down her cheeks. I rubbed them away with the pad of my thumb. "I am so sorry for this. I am so sorry for everything."

"Shh. You are all right. You're alive, and you are with me. Nothing can get to you now." I clutched her to my chest and let her sob into my tunic.

I looked up to thank Zeus, but I realized that he was gone. He had left shortly after Rose woke up and didn't bother to wait around for my thanks.

" Come on," I shifted my arms around Rose so I was holding her bridal style. "Let's get out of here. I know Lissa is worried and you don't need to be here any longer." I stood up and took off.

"Lissa? How do you know Lissa?" Rose's question realized my mistake.

"I'll explain everything when we get you into warm clothes and something hot into your system." I said gently.

I flew us out of the Underworld and to her apartment as fast as I could. I needed her in warm things so she wouldn't catch a cold. Now that she was mortal, I had to watch for mortal illnesses like that.

I flew her in through her apartment window and set her down. She went to take a hot shower and change while I made her hot chocolate with two packets of cocoa instead of one. She came walking out of her room in yoga pants and a tight fitting long sleeved shirt. Hair wet hair fell down her shoulders and back and was curling nicely. She sat down on the sofa and I handed her the drink. I sat behind her and she leaned into me, staring outside the window at the bright night life of New York City.

"What are we going to do now?" she asked quietly.

"I'm not sure yet. You are mortal now so you will start to age with the years. I'm still an Angel so…" I trailed off, thinking about my three options that I was suddenly faced with. I could stay with Rose and still be an Angel, but I'd loss her to the Underworld in the future. I could leave her now and never look back, but that would kill me to be that cruel to her and to my heart. I could also fall from Grace.

"We'll figure it out. We always have before so this time shouldn't be any different." Rose seemed to understand my dilemma and knew just how to handle it. She was giving me time.

"You're right." I took the mug from Rose's hands and placed it on the hard wood floor by the sofa and wrapped my arms around her shoulders. "I'm just glad that I have you alive and safe with me."

Rose fell asleep in my arms about an hour later. I placed her in her bed and kissed her forehead before I called Lissa to have her babysit while I took care of business. When Lissa came to the apartment, she smiled up at me confidently.

"If you ask me, you're making the right choice. You know what you need to do to get what you want and need. I have faith in you and I know the guys will understand your decision."

I smiled at her as I let her in the door. "Rose is asleep. I should be back before she wakes up, but if not, tell her I had unfinished business to take care of."

With that, I took off towards heaven and I started to feel more confident in the choice that I had made.

**Hey lovely Readers! I have an announcement to make and it's a sad one! I am going to New Orleans for a few days, so i may not be able to finish the story till i get back! But, i will make an effort to work on this story before i go. I am almost done with it so i'm about 98% sure that I'll get it done. **

**Anyway, R&R for me Lovelies! -SagWarrior**


	19. Waking Up

Epilogue

I woke up to the sunlight pouring into my bedroom window. Checking the clock, I realized that it was about 9:30 and the other people in the house would be waking up soon if not already.

I slid out of bed and silently walked out of the room before closing the door so that Dimitri could sleep. His job at the hospital had been wearing him down with all the late night emergencies lately and I wanted him to sleep.

I moved quietly down the hall until I came to the first door on the left. I opened the door just a crack, just enough for me to see Levi's sleeping form in his bed. I laughed quietly as I noticed that me son was sprawled out on his bed, not tucked in like his dad had him last night.

I closed the door and went to the next room across the hall from Levi's. When I opened the door, I found my daughter on the floor colouring. She was humming a cute little song that she learned in school and didn't even notice that I was standing in her doorway.

"Lana," I whispered. "What are you doing?"

"Colouring. Levi's asleep so I can't play with him yet," she pouted.

I smiled. "Well, why don't we wake up Levi? He needs to get up or else he'll stay awake all day."

I watched the wheels in my daughter's head turn as she thought about this new plan. Soon, she agreed with a vibrant nod of her head. She followed me to her brother's room and I opened the door just enough for us to go inside without a lot of noise escaping. I picked Lana up and tossed her lightly on her brother. She gave a shriek as she landed on his back.

Levi yelp as soon as the added weight of his baby sister hit his back and he rolled out of bed. Lana and I couldn't stop ourselves from bursting out in rolls of laughter.

"Mom! What was that for?" Levi shouted when he pieced together that I started this.

"You needed to get up. It's 9:30 and you need to get up Mister."

He gave me a look that said, _you can't be serious._ Lana started to giggle at her brother.

"Oh, don't give me that look. I could have jumped on you myself, but instead I got your sister that weighs next to nothing to do my dirty work," I said jerking a thumb in my daughter's direction.

"You need to start doing your own dirty work."

We all looked up so see Dimitri standing in the doorway. His brown hair was down and messy from sleep. He had on his flannel pajama bottoms and a thermal shirt that he had just put on. He was smiling at us, but I knew by the bags under his eyes and the way that his shoulders slumped a little that he was exhausted.

I stood up and walked over to him. He put an arm around me and I nestled into his side. "I'm sorry that we woke you up. Go back to bed and wake up when you're ready."

"It's okay. My wife and daughter are too loud for me to do that. Besides, I need to make your breakfast."

"I can cook. You got in late last night."

Dimitri raised an eyebrow at me. "You cook?"

"Yes I can thank you. I cooked breakfast yesterday just fine."

"You burned the waffles that go into the toaster, Mom," Levi said.

I shushed him with a look. "Thanks dude for throwing under the bus!" He just shrugged.

"See? You need me. Admit it." Dimitri said playfully.

"Never!" I shouted before I grabbed Lana and ran with her down the stairs to the living room. I heard Dimitri and Levi's running feet behind me and Lana squealed in my ear with excitement.

I put Lana in the corner and told her to stay put as Dimitri and Levi ran into the room. The both looked at me then Lana. They looked so much a like when they did that. Dimitri leaned down and put his hands on his knees to talk to his son.

"So, what's the plan, Levi? How can we safe the princess from the evil queen?"

"You go after the princess, and I'll get the evil queen," Levi said in a serious voice.

Dimitri nodded and took off towards Lana as Levi barreled towards me. He wrapped his arms around my waist and knocked me over with more force than I expected him to have for a ten-year-old.

"Oomph!" I hit the hard wood floor on my butt and a lot harder than necessary.

Levi climbed on top of me and pinned my arms down with his. I sat on my chest to hold me down. He looked over to his father who was sitting on the sofa with Lana on his knee watching us.

"Captain Belikov! I have the evil queen!" Levi shouted.

Dimitri hopped up with Lana on the couch. He came over and stood over us. He inspected our son's job at holding me to the floor with a calculative look. His eyes sparkled as he enjoyed playing this game as much as his kids.

"Soldier, you have captured the evil queen. You may go and take the princess to the kitchen so that we may have chocolate chip pancakes!" Dimitri's voice was proud and loving as he spoke. He rarely got a harsh tone with the kids, he was the perfect dad.

He held out a hand to pull me up. I took it and instead of letting him pull me, I yanked him down. He landed with a hand on either side of my body and we almost smacked heads. We both belted out laughs at the stunt I just pulled. He lay down on the floor and I followed suit.

"I love you Rose."

"I love you too." I pecked him on the lips and pulled back, but Dimitri wasn't having that. He wrapped a hand around my face to the base of my neck and held my face to his. I smiled into the kiss as I heard the kids complain about being hungry.

"I guess we have to feed them," Dimitri mumbled when he let me go.

"That would be a good thing," I joked.

We both got up to feed our kids and start the day.

By the time we had finally fallen into bed, we had had a pancake batter war, a water fight, and then a flour battle when Lana and I tried to back cookies. Dimitri took the day off because it was Sunday so when he wasn't taking pictures of the kids and me, he was in on the action. Once, Lana got a hold of the camera and she took a great picture of Dimitri and I in the grass during the water fight. We were tangled up in each other after he dumped a bucket of water on me. I slipped in mud and grabbed his shirt and pulled him down with me. My head was thrown back in laughter and Dimitri's was bent down towards his chest laughing just as hard.

After all of the fun, we washed, fed, and tucked in our kids for the night. Even though they protested, they had no problem falling asleep. We had run them all out of gas from playing all day.

Dimitri came out of the bathroom as I worked on my advice column for the Thursday's addition. He slipped under the covers and looked over my shoulder to read what I was typing.

"So what's the dilemma that New York City has today, Mrs. Rose?" he asked.

"Oh the usual. Some lady can't get a hold on her life and she feels like she needs to try new things and see new places and people."

"So what's your answer?"

I looked at him and took off my glasses, something that my mortal eyes needed now. "You are really interested in my work or are you trying to please me so you get laid?"

Dimitri chuckled. "Both. Differently both."

I closed my laptop and snuggled into Dimitri. I was happy and content in this world that we had built for each other. We had a great house in the woods in New York, Dimitri worked for the local hospital running the ambulance and being a first responder. I still had my _Ask Rose_ column to work with and I even got to do it from home so when the kids come home from school, they aren't home alone.

Our children are total blessings. We weren't sure if we could even have children but after three years of being married, we found out that I was pregnant with Levi. When he was three and a half, we had Lana. Both of them are precious and I wouldn't trade them for anything in the world.

I smiled to myself as I thought about where we were and how we got there. Dimitri seemed to be thinking the same thing because his arms tightened around me.

"How's your neck?" I asked.

"Good today. I can hardly feel the burn."

Dimitri told me years ago how he became a mortal. After he had put me in my bed and left me with Lissa, he went to confront Gabriel for not allowing him to be with me. He told Gabriel that because of his stupid law, he almost lost me. Gabriel gave him a choice: to stay and Angel and away from me, or to fall from Grace.

Dimitri chose to stay with me and Gabriel made it happen, but not without hurting Dimitri for his betrayal. He ripped out his wings and burned the necklace that Dimitri wore that told the Angel community that he was an Angel. The necklace left a permanent scar on the back of his neck and there are faint scars on his back where his wings were. He told me that all the pain was worth seeing our children and me and being able to be with us.

"I love you," I whispered into the darkness.

I felt Dimitri's lips press into my hair. "I love you too, forever and always. You can't get rid of me if you wanted."

"Yeah, you're pretty much stuck with me too, huh?" I smiled.

"After all the hell we've been through, oh yeah. That and I have three other reasons to be with you." Dimitri's voice turned pretty serious.

"And what are those reasons?" I asked.

"One," he held up his thumb, "Levi. Two, Lana. Three, my love for you. I can't let you or those kids go."

I kissed his hand. "And we won't let you go."

I turned my face so I could see his. He leaned down and kissed me. We fell asleep in each other's arms with nothing to worry about, only things to look forward to and each other's hand to hold.

**OKAY GUYS! I'm finally done with this story. I wanted to finish it before my New Orleans trip and i have! Ta Da! I hope you guys loved it! -SagWarrior**


	20. The After Effect

Epilogue

I woke up to the sunlight pouring into my bedroom window. Checking the clock, I realized that it was about 9:30 and the other people in the house would be waking up soon if not already.

I slid out of bed and silently walked out of the room before closing the door so that Dimitri could sleep. His job at the hospital had been wearing him down with all the late night emergencies lately and I wanted him to sleep.

I moved quietly down the hall until I came to the first door on the left. I opened the door just a crack, just enough for me to see Levi's sleeping form in his bed. I laughed quietly as I noticed that me son was sprawled out on his bed, not tucked in like his dad had him last night.

I closed the door and went to the next room across the hall from Levi's. When I opened the door, I found my daughter on the floor colouring. She was humming a cute little song that she learned in school and didn't even notice that I was standing in her doorway.

"Lana," I whispered. "What are you doing?"

"Colouring. Levi's asleep so I can't play with him yet," she pouted.

I smiled. "Well, why don't we wake up Levi? He needs to get up or else he'll stay awake all day."

I watched the wheels in my daughter's head turn as she thought about this new plan. Soon, she agreed with a vibrant nod of her head. She followed me to her brother's room and I opened the door just enough for us to go inside without a lot of noise escaping. I picked Lana up and tossed her lightly on her brother. She gave a shriek as she landed on his back.

Levi yelp as soon as the added weight of his baby sister hit his back and he rolled out of bed. Lana and I couldn't stop ourselves from bursting out in rolls of laughter.

"Mom! What was that for?" Levi shouted when he pieced together that I started this.

"You needed to get up. It's 9:30 and you need to get up Mister."

He gave me a look that said, _you can't be serious._ Lana started to giggle at her brother.

"Oh, don't give me that look. I could have jumped on you myself, but instead I got your sister that weighs next to nothing to do my dirty work," I said jerking a thumb in my daughter's direction.

"You need to start doing your own dirty work."

We all looked up so see Dimitri standing in the doorway. His brown hair was down and messy from sleep. He had on his flannel pajama bottoms and a thermal shirt that he had just put on. He was smiling at us, but I knew by the bags under his eyes and the way that his shoulders slumped a little that he was exhausted.

I stood up and walked over to him. He put an arm around me and I nestled into his side. "I'm sorry that we woke you up. Go back to bed and wake up when you're ready."

"It's okay. My wife and daughter are too loud for me to do that. Besides, I need to make your breakfast."

"I can cook. You got in late last night."

Dimitri raised an eyebrow at me. "You cook?"

"Yes I can thank you. I cooked breakfast yesterday just fine."

"You burned the waffles that go into the toaster, Mom," Levi said.

I shushed him with a look. "Thanks dude for throwing under the bus!" He just shrugged.

"See? You need me. Admit it." Dimitri said playfully.

"Never!" I shouted before I grabbed Lana and ran with her down the stairs to the living room. I heard Dimitri and Levi's running feet behind me and Lana squealed in my ear with excitement.

I put Lana in the corner and told her to stay put as Dimitri and Levi ran into the room. The both looked at me then Lana. They looked so much a like when they did that. Dimitri leaned down and put his hands on his knees to talk to his son.

"So, what's the plan, Levi? How can we safe the princess from the evil queen?"

"You go after the princess, and I'll get the evil queen," Levi said in a serious voice.

Dimitri nodded and took off towards Lana as Levi barreled towards me. He wrapped his arms around my waist and knocked me over with more force than I expected him to have for a ten-year-old.

"Oomph!" I hit the hard wood floor on my butt and a lot harder than necessary.

Levi climbed on top of me and pinned my arms down with his. I sat on my chest to hold me down. He looked over to his father who was sitting on the sofa with Lana on his knee watching us.

"Captain Belikov! I have the evil queen!" Levi shouted.

Dimitri hopped up with Lana on the couch. He came over and stood over us. He inspected our son's job at holding me to the floor with a calculative look. His eyes sparkled as he enjoyed playing this game as much as his kids.

"Soldier, you have captured the evil queen. You may go and take the princess to the kitchen so that we may have chocolate chip pancakes!" Dimitri's voice was proud and loving as he spoke. He rarely got a harsh tone with the kids, he was the perfect dad.

He held out a hand to pull me up. I took it and instead of letting him pull me, I yanked him down. He landed with a hand on either side of my body and we almost smacked heads. We both belted out laughs at the stunt I just pulled. He lay down on the floor and I followed suit.

"I love you Rose."

"I love you too." I pecked him on the lips and pulled back, but Dimitri wasn't having that. He wrapped a hand around my face to the base of my neck and held my face to his. I smiled into the kiss as I heard the kids complain about being hungry.

"I guess we have to feed them," Dimitri mumbled when he let me go.

"That would be a good thing," I joked.

We both got up to feed our kids and start the day.

By the time we had finally fallen into bed, we had had a pancake batter war, a water fight, and then a flour battle when Lana and I tried to back cookies. Dimitri took the day off because it was Sunday so when he wasn't taking pictures of the kids and me, he was in on the action. Once, Lana got a hold of the camera and she took a great picture of Dimitri and I in the grass during the water fight. We were tangled up in each other after he dumped a bucket of water on me. I slipped in mud and grabbed his shirt and pulled him down with me. My head was thrown back in laughter and Dimitri's was bent down towards his chest laughing just as hard.

After all of the fun, we washed, fed, and tucked in our kids for the night. Even though they protested, they had no problem falling asleep. We had run them all out of gas from playing all day.

Dimitri came out of the bathroom as I worked on my advice column for the Thursday's addition. He slipped under the covers and looked over my shoulder to read what I was typing.

"So what's the dilemma that New York City has today, Mrs. Rose?" he asked.

"Oh the usual. Some lady can't get a hold on her life and she feels like she needs to try new things and see new places and people."

"So what's your answer?"

I looked at him and took off my glasses, something that my mortal eyes needed now. "You are really interested in my work or are you trying to please me so you get laid?"

Dimitri chuckled. "Both. Differently both."

I closed my laptop and snuggled into Dimitri. I was happy and content in this world that we had built for each other. We had a great house in the woods in New York, Dimitri worked for the local hospital running the ambulance and being a first responder. I still had my _Ask Rose_ column to work with and I even got to do it from home so when the kids come home from school, they aren't home alone.

Our children are total blessings. We weren't sure if we could even have children but after three years of being married, we found out that I was pregnant with Levi. When he was three and a half, we had Lana. Both of them are precious and I wouldn't trade them for anything in the world.

I smiled to myself as I thought about where we were and how we got there. Dimitri seemed to be thinking the same thing because his arms tightened around me.

"How's your neck?" I asked.

"Good today. I can hardly feel the burn."

Dimitri told me years ago how he became a mortal. After he had put me in my bed and left me with Lissa, he went to confront Gabriel for not allowing him to be with me. He told Gabriel that because of his stupid law, he almost lost me. Gabriel gave him a choice: to stay and Angel and away from me, or to fall from Grace.

Dimitri chose to stay with me and Gabriel made it happen, but not without hurting Dimitri for his betrayal. He ripped out his wings and burned the necklace that Dimitri wore that told the Angel community that he was an Angel. The necklace left a permanent scar on the back of his neck and there are faint scars on his back where his wings were. He told me that all the pain was worth seeing our children and me and being able to be with us.

"I love you," I whispered into the darkness.

I felt Dimitri's lips press into my hair. "I love you too, forever and always. You can't get rid of me if you wanted."

"Yeah, you're pretty much stuck with me too, huh?" I smiled.

"After all the hell we've been through, oh yeah. That and I have three other reasons to be with you." Dimitri's voice turned pretty serious.

"And what are those reasons?" I asked.

"One," he held up his thumb, "Levi. Two, Lana. Three, my love for you. I can't let you or those kids go."

I kissed his hand. "And we won't let you go."

I turned my face so I could see his. He leaned down and kissed me. We fell asleep in each other's arms with nothing to worry about, only things to look forward to and each other's hand to hold.


End file.
